ROS on Ubuntu-22.04-WSL Configuration

A Robot Operating System (ROS) environment tailored for running on Ubuntu 22.04 within Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL). This setup promotes seamless integration between Windows and Ubuntu, allowing ROS to operate without the need of a traditional virtual machine (VM).

Features

• Seamless Windows interoperability, minimizing the overhead of a traditional virtual machine.
• Cross-filesystem access between Linux and Windows.
• Supports ROS virtualization tools such as Rviz and Gazebo Fortress.
• Improved GPU acceleration, offering streamlined rendering.

Filesystem Hierarchy

└── etc
    └── ubuntu
        └── .dotfiles
            ├── setup
            │   ├── aliases.sh
            │   ├── ros.sh
            │   ├── packages.sh
            │   └── wsl.sh
            └── setup.sh

setup.sh automates the dependency installation and environment set up process, including:

File	Description
aliases.sh	Shell aliases
packages.sh	Packages and dependencies installation
ros.sh	ROS environment configuration
wsl.sh	WSL-specific settings, configured in /etc/wsl.conf

Prerequisites

1. Windows Subsystem for Linux feature enabled:

   DISM.exe /Online /Enable-Feature /FeatureName:Microsoft-Windows-Subsystem-Linux /All /NoRestart

2. Update WSL to the latest version:

   wsl --update

Applying Configuration

Rebuild the Existing Image

1. Clone the repository:

   sudo git clone https://github.com/khangvum/ubuntu-22.04-ros-wsl.git /etc/ubuntu/.dotfiles

2. Apply the settings:

   bash /etc/ubuntu/.dotfiles/setup.sh

Install a Fresh Distribution

Important

This method only applies to WSL version 2.4.4 and higher

1. Download the latest version of the distribution: ubuntu-22.04-ros-v1.0.2.wsl

2. Install the distribution by double-clicking the file

3. Launch the distribution and apply the settings:

   bash /etc/ubuntu/.dotfiles/setup.sh

Collaboration

This project is a collaboration between:

• Ton Nu Thanh Thao: GitHub | LinkedIn | Gmail
• Khang Vu: GitHub | LinkedIn | Gmail